Dear Reader
Another week in the books. Anyone else surprised we made it to 5 issues? Feels like we are just picking up steam!!
Get Your Suit Ready
You’re space suit that is. I’d argue that the fight against climate change mostly likely hinges on our ability to innovate. The space exploration industry is probably the most innovative sector of the economy and existentially, some believe humanity’s fate depends on our ability to survive somewhere other than Planet Earth.
I’d say that makes space more than worthy of a climate newsletter. Here we go -
Last week - April 8th 2021 - was the five year anniversary of SpaceX successfully landing a rocket on a boat. Not only was this an amazing feat of engineering given both the ship and rocket are moving somewhat unpredictably, this was a really big deal for the future of space travel.
A Falcon 9 rocket that lands on a drone ship can lift about 5.5 tons, compared to 3.5 tons for a rocket that lands back at the launch site.
After nailing the landing, the economics made more sense and SpaceX was able to begin reusing rockets in earnest. They have landed more than 50 rockets at sea and all of their launches planned for 2021 will be on reused rockets.
The more times these rockets are used, the lower the price will be for access to space. The bet is, further innovation will follow which pushes us towards a space-faring future. We may actually not be so far off - SpaceX is planning a mission with an all civilian crew set to launch in Q4 of this year!
While commercial space travel gets a lot of hype, it’s important to remember who really runs the space industry. The USA, China and UAE are here to remind you as all three nations recently went to Mars.
China has a rover that is in orbit of Mars and will attempt to land in May. The UAE successfully put a rover into orbit. And of course, the US landed Perseverance rover on Mars in February.
Perseverance has some pretty serious goals - searching for evidence of ancient life and collecting samples to bring back to Earth. If that wasn’t enough it will also be testing an instrument designed to generate oxygen from the carbon dioxide-dominated Martian atmosphere.
Also, it brought a friend along. Ingenuity Helicopter hopes to prove that flight is possible in the Martian atmosphere. This would open up a whole new set of possibilities from surveillance and imaging to eventual on-planet transportation.
While fantasizing about future space travel is nice, there is a much more pressing concern in what the industry is actually doing today. All those reusable rockets aren’t launching people - they’re launching satellites.
Satellites are great. They can provide internet, power navigation software and I am sure a ton more - but the problem is - we didn’t create a way to bring them back to Earth. So once a satellite gets up there, it stays up there.
It’s gotten so bad that a new study found nowhere on Earth is safe from satellite light pollution. While this probably isn’t a problem for an average stargazer, it can be a challenge for astronomers, and the problem is only going to worse.
More broadly, what does this say about our early days of space exploration? Are we not deemed to repeat the same mistakes that got us into trouble with climate-change? Do we really want a handful of billionaires deciding what space travel looks like? Are we worthy of space-travel if we are still so divided as humans?
Since this is a Friday newsletter I figure I can leave you with these questions.
Amplify
A Chinese company has made steel using hydrogen for the first time. Steel manufacturing is one of the big problems we face in climate change. Making steel is an energy intensive process and accounts for almost 10% of global emissions.
Many companies have been seeking alternative ways to do it and now that a company has proven it is possible, more are likely to follow. I think this is something to be excited about as we cannot get to net-zero without innovation like this. GWG will watch this space and keep you posted.
Create Accountability
In news that doesn’t feel so great, Japan plans to release nuclear wastewater into the sea. The water has been treated but some radioactive isotopes remain and while Japan claims it is safe and in-line with International standards, neighboring countries are pushing back strongly.
South Korea denounced it as “utterly intolerable.” China cited “grave concerns.” Taiwan also raised strong objections.
Japan is calling the criticism “unscientific” and points out that releases into the ocean happen around the world. I don’t want to jump to conclusions but if South Korea, China and Taiwan all agree on something - there might be some merit.
Last week we talked about Sri Lanka and Greenland and I said I had hope we were at the start of a movement where governments would put environmental concerns first. Looks like we may be taking a step backwards.
GWG Book Club
Another non-climate related recommendation. This is one of my all time favorites. Very funny and you can’t help but appreciate what you have in life after hearing his journey. Trevor Noah is one of those people everyone should know about. If you haven’t read this I highly recommend it, he has an amazing and inspiring story.
Potpourri
If I’ve piqued your interest in the possibility of living on Mars, here is what it could look like.
If you need to test out the other-worldly life before moving, you’re in luck with the first space hotel set to open in 2027!
That’s All Folks!
As always, thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed. Cheers to a great weekend!